Vehicle seat occupant detectors such as those used in seat belt reminder systems may include one or more springs as part of a weight or force detection device. Such a device is often installed under a cushion of a seat assembly. Unfortunately, the variety of seat designs used in various vehicles may lead to undesirable part number proliferation. That is, many different final assemblies of the device may be necessary to meet various customer requirements, but the only difference from one assembly to the next is the spring rate of springs used in the device which determines the amount of weight or force necessary for the device to determine that a seat is occupied.
It has also been observed that the weight or force threshold at which an occupant detection device indicates that a seat is occupied may change over time due to, for example, breakdown/wear of the cushion and/or seat-cover. As such, it would be advantageous if a vehicle seat occupant detection device could be adjusted as part of a vehicle service process.